JP2637267B2 - Roll paper feeder - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a roll paper feeder for supplying roll paper to an image forming apparatus such as an electrostatic copying machine or a facsimile.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, in an electrostatic copying machine as an image forming apparatus, particularly in a large copying machine capable of copying a large document such as an A0 size, a roll paper is fed out and cut at predetermined lengths. On the other hand, there has been provided an apparatus capable of externally attaching a roll paper feeding device to be supplied to a copying machine.

In this roll paper feeder, for example, as shown in FIG. 7, a movable main body 90 loaded with roll paper P is supported by a fixed frame 91 connected to a copying machine F so as to be able to move up and down. Inside the movable main body 90, a loading section 92 for the roll paper P, a paper feeding means 93 for feeding and feeding the roll paper P, and a roll paper P fed by the paper feeding means 93 are provided for a predetermined length. A cutting means 94 is provided for cutting at the same time.

The movable body 90 is guided to move up and down by rolling a roller 95 provided on the movable body 90 along a guide rail 96 erected on the fixed frame body 91.
A fluid-filled damper 97 for balancing the weight of the movable main body 90 is interposed between the movable main body 90 and the fixed frame 91, and the movable main body 90 resists the urging force of the damper 97. By pressing down to a predetermined lower position, a sheet cassette (not shown) can be attached to and detached from the copying machine F.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the roll paper feeder is provided with locking means 98 for locking the movable main body 90 at the raised position. The locking means 98 is rotatably supported by the fixed frame body 91, and as the movable body 90 rises, a predetermined portion of the movable body 90, for example, a support shaft 95 of the roller 95.
and a coil spring 98b as an urging member for constantly urging the hook member 98a to the engaging position.
And According to this locking means 98, the movable body
The downward movement of the movable main body 90 can be permitted by rotating the hook member 98a clockwise in the figure against the urging force of the coil spring 98b in accordance with the downward pressing of the coil spring 98b. .

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> According to the roll paper feeding device having the above configuration, when the movable main body 90 is moved up and down, particularly when the moving operation is performed with one hand,
There is a problem that the movable main body 90 tends to have a vertical difference on both sides in the axial direction of the roll paper P, that is, the movable main body 90 is easily inclined right and left, and it is not possible to smoothly move up and down.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a roll paper feeder capable of preventing the movable main body from being tilted during elevating and lowering the movable main body so as to smoothly move up and down.

<Means for Solving the Problems> To achieve the above object, a roll paper feeding device according to the present invention includes a roll paper loading unit, a paper feeding unit for feeding and feeding the roll paper, and a paper feeding unit. In a roll paper feeder supporting a movable body having cutting means for cutting the fed roll paper to a predetermined length so as to be able to move up and down by a fixed frame, any one of the movable body and the fixed frame is used. A pair of racks extending in the vertical direction are arranged side by side in a state separated by a predetermined distance, and a pair of pinions are arranged side by side so as to be integrally rotatable while being engaged with the rack. Guide rails extending in the vertical direction are provided at four corners in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and the movable body is provided with rollers that can roll along the guide rails.

<Operation> According to the roll paper feeding device having the above configuration, when the movable body is raised and lowered, the rack and the pinion can equalize the amount of vertical movement on the left and right sides of the movable body. Tilt can be prevented. Further, as the movable body moves up and down, rollers provided on the movable body roll along guide rails provided at four corners of the fixed frame. Thereby, when raising and lowering the movable body, rattling in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction does not occur between the movable body and the fixed frame.

<Example> Hereinafter, an example will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a copying machine F equipped with the roll paper feeding device 2 of the present invention. The copying machine F is capable of copying a large document such as F1 size or A0 size.
A paper cassette G is loaded inside, and a wide document insertion port 12, a paper insertion port 10, and a paper discharge port 13 are provided on the front side of the horizontally long copier main body 1, and the same wide document conveyance is provided on the upper surface. The roll paper feeder 2 is provided on the front side of the copying machine main body 1.

The roll paper feeder 2 is supported by a fixed frame 3 mounted on the front side of the copying machine main body 1 via a connecting member 21 (see FIG. 1), and is movable up and down by the fixed frame 3. It is constituted by the movable main body 4.

Referring also to FIG. 5, the fixed frame 3 is provided with a bottom frame.
Vertical frames 32 are erected on the left and right sides of the base 31, guide rails 33 are provided on the front and rear sides of the vertical frames 32, and casters 35 are provided at the lower four corners of the bottom frame 31. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the movable body 4 is provided with an elevating frame 42, and near the upper and lower four corners of the elevating frame 42, guide rails of the fixed frame 3 are provided.
Rollers 41 that can roll freely along 33 are supported by shafts 41a, 41b, 41c, 41.
Each is attached via d. Of the support shafts, the support shafts 41a and 41b on the rear side are provided in parallel with the axis of the roll paper P in a state where the lifting frame 42 is inserted,
The front support shafts 41c and 41d are provided at right angles to the axis of the roll paper P. In addition, a tie lot 34 as a handle is erected at the front of the elevating frame 42. By pulling the tie lot 34 toward the front, the front part of the elevating frame 42 is opened so that the roll paper P can be loaded. ing. Also, on the left and right sides at the bottom of the lifting frame 42,
A pair of fluid-filled dampers 43 for urging the movable body 4 upward
Are rotatably connected. This fluid filled damper 43
Is rotatably connected to the bottom frame 31 of the fixed frame 3. Further, the movable body 4 is provided with a roll paper P loading section 44, and a paper feeding means 45 for feeding out and feeding the roll paper P above the roll paper P loading section 44; There is provided cutting means 46 for cutting the paper P to a predetermined length. The paper feeding means 45 is for nipping the roll paper P between a pair of rollers 45a and feeding out the roll paper P. The cutting means 46 includes a rotary blade 46a.
And the fixed blade 46b cuts the roll paper P.

With reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, the raised position of the movable main body 4 is defined by a position regulating member 36 provided on the fixed frame 3. Further, the downward movement of the movable body 4 is regulated by a lock means 5 provided near the position regulating member 36. The locking means 5 is provided on one of the left and right vertical frames 32 of the fixed frame 3, and is provided with a hook member 51 rotatably supported on the fixed frame 3 around a support shaft 51 a. The hook member 51 has a coil spring 52 as an urging member that constantly urges the hook member 51 to rotate counterclockwise in FIG. Near the lower end of the hook member 51, an engagement groove 51b is formed to engage with a support shaft 41a that supports the roller 41 on the upper back side of the movable body 4, and at the lower end, When the movable main body 4 is raised, the hook member 51 is rotated against the urging force of the coil spring 52 by contacting the support shaft 41a when the movable body 4 is raised.
Tapered portion 51 for automatically engaging 51b with support shaft 41a
c is formed. The engagement groove 51b of the hook member 51 is
Even when the movable main body 4 is pressed downward, a horizontal receiving portion 51d is provided to abut the lower surface of the support shaft 41a so as to hold the movable main body 4 at the raised position against the pressing force.

Further, the fixed frame 3 is provided with a lock releasing means 6 for releasing the locked state of the movable main body 4 by the locking means 5 corresponding to the locking means 5.
The lock release means 6 is provided with a hook member 51 of the lock means 5.
A pressing member 61 for pressing and rotating the coil member 52 against the urging force of the coil spring 52, and a stopper member 62 for maintaining the pressing state of the hook member 51 by the pressing member 61. At one end of the pressing member 61, an operation button 61a exposed on the front side of the fixed frame 3 is provided, and at the opposite end,
A contact portion 61b that contacts a pin 51e protruding from the side surface of the hook member 51 is provided.

On the other hand, the stopper member 62
In FIG. 1, the coil spring 63 is supported so as to be rotatable about a, and is always urged clockwise in FIG. 1 by a coil spring 63 bridged between the stopper member 62 and the pressing member 61. . Further, the stopper member 62 is
In the state of engagement between the shaft 41a and the support shaft 41a, the engaging portion 62b of the upper end corner is pressed by the lower surface of the pressing member 61 and rotated counterclockwise (see FIG. 3). On the lower surface of the pressing member 61, a concave portion 61c that engages with the engaging portion 62b of the stopper member 62 is provided. The engagement between the engagement portion 62b and the concave portion 61c is performed in a state where the engagement between the hook member 51 and the support shaft 41a of the roller 41 is released by pressing the pressing member 61 (see FIG. 4). ). Further, the stopper member 62 comes into contact with the roller 41 immediately after the movable body 4 at the raised position is pressed down, and the stopper member 62 is
A cam surface 62c is formed for forcibly releasing the engagement between the engaging portion 62b of the stopper member 62 and the concave portion 61c of the pressing member 61 by rotating against the coil spring 63.

On the left and right sides on the back side of the fixed frame 3, racks 37 extending in the vertical direction are provided side by side, and on the lower left and right sides of the movable body 4, pinions 47 meshing with the respective racks 37 are provided. ing. Each pinion 47 is a roller on the lower back side
In order to support 41, it is integrally rotatably fixed to both ends of a support shaft 41b through which the elevating frame 42 is inserted in parallel with the axis of the roll paper P. Therefore, the above rack 37 and pinion
By means of 47, when the movable main body 4 is moved up and down, the amount of elevating on the left and right sides of the movable main body 4 can be made equal. That is, the movable main body 4 can be prevented from tilting left and right.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the roller 41 provided on the elevating frame 42 rolls along the guide rail 33 of the fixed frame 3 with the elevating operation of the movable main body 4. Therefore, when the movable body 4 is moved up and down, there is no rattling between the roller 41 and the fixed frame 3 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction. A drive device 7 having a motor 71 as a drive source is provided in the vertical frame 32 of the fixed frame 3, and the driving force of the drive device 7 is controlled by a driven device 8 provided on the movable body 4. Is transmitted to The transmission of the driving force of the driving device 7 is performed by an output gear G1 attached to the output shaft 72,
This is performed by meshing with an input gear G2 attached to the input shaft 81 on the driven device 8 side. These output gear G1 and input gear
With G2, the meshing state is released as the movable body 4 descends, and the meshing state is maintained again as the movable body 4 rises.

In the roll paper feeding device 2 having the above-described configuration, the locking means 5 itself has the movable body 4
Is held at the raised position, there is no possibility that the movable body 4 is inadvertently pushed down. Therefore, during the discharge of the roll paper P, the driving force of the movable body 4 to the driven device 8 is cut off, and there is no possibility that the cut means 46 cannot cut the roll paper P.

On the other hand, in order to push down the movable body 4 in order to attach and detach the sheet cassette G, the pressing member 61 of the unlocking means 6 is required.
Is pressed through an operation button 61a provided at one end thereof, whereby the hook member 51 of the lock means 5 is rotated clockwise against the urging force of the coil spring 52,
The locked state of the movable main body 4 by the locking means 5 may be released (see FIG. 4). In this unlocked state, the pressing member 61 is restricted from being pushed back rightward in FIG. 4 by engaging the concave portion 61c with the engaging portion 62b of the stopper member 62. Therefore, even if the hand is released from the operation button 61a of the pressing member 61, the unlocked state can be maintained. Then, immediately after the movable body 4 is pressed down, the roller 41 comes into contact with the cam surface 62c of the stopper member 62, and the stopper member 62 is rotated counterclockwise against the urging force of the coil spring 63, Thereby, the engagement between the pressing member 61 and the stopper member 62 is released, and the pressing member 61
61 is returned rightward in FIG.

The stopper member 62 can be implemented without providing the stopper member. In this case, in order to push down the movable body 4, it is sufficient to push down the movable body 4 with the other hand while pressing the operation button 61a of the pushing member 61. On this occasion,
The rack member 37 and the pinion 47 prevent the movable body 4 from tilting left and right. Further, the movable rail 4 is prevented from tilting in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction by the guide rail 33 and the rollers 41 rolling along the guide rail 33. Therefore, the movable body 4 can be pushed down smoothly even by one-handed operation.

The roll paper feeder of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, various design changes such as providing the pinion 47 on the fixed frame 3 side and providing the rack 37 on the movable body 4 side can be made. Can be applied.

<Effect of the Invention> As described above, according to the roll paper feeder of the present invention,
The rack and the pinion can prevent the movable body from tilting left and right when the movable body moves up and down. Also, a guide rail provided on the fixed frame side and rolling along the guide rail,
Since the movable body can be prevented from tilting in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction by the rollers provided on the movable body side, a unique effect that the movable body can be raised and lowered smoothly even by one-handed operation is achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing one embodiment of a roll paper feeding apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view seen from a plane, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are locking means and unlocking. FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing an internal configuration, FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which a roll paper feeding device is mounted on a copying machine, and FIG. 7 is a conventional example. FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view of a main part of the same. P ... roll paper, 3 ... fixed frame, 37 ... rack, 4 ... movable body, 44 ... roll paper loading section, 45 ... paper feeding means, 46 ... cutting means, 47 ... pinion, 5 Locking means 51 Hook member 52 Coil spring as urging member 6 Lock releasing means 61 Pressing member 62 Stopper member

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A movable body having a roll paper loading section, a paper feeding means for feeding and feeding the roll paper, and a cutting means for cutting the roll paper fed by the paper feeding means to a predetermined length; In a roll paper feeding device supported by a fixed frame so as to be able to move up and down, a pair of racks extending in a vertical direction are arranged side by side on one of the movable main body and the fixed frame so as to be separated by a predetermined distance, On the other hand, a pair of pinions
It is juxtaposed so that it can rotate integrally with the above rack,
The fixed frame body is provided with guide rails extending in the vertical direction at four corners in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and the movable body has
A roll paper feeder, wherein rollers that can roll freely along the guide rails are provided.